The Return
by tech-17
Summary: Basically, the epilogue that was missing from the final book.


**Disclaimer: It's fan fiction. I don't own it, and if the characters are OOC deal with it. My interpretation is different than yours.**

After my family left Underland, my mom tried to get things back to normal. It wasn't easy. Lizzy will never forget the things she saw, and Boots still talks to cockroaches, even the little ones. And Mom and I both have scars to show for our time there. Mom's began to fade much faster than mine, and soon she could cover them with makeup. You could still see them, but they didn't look unnatural. I had too many though. I had to wear long sleeve shirts and pants all the time. It was fall already, so it wasn't too terrible, and it didn't seem out of place. Mom fabricated some story to convince the gym teacher to let me wear a thin long-sleeve shirt and sweat pants instead of the required shorts and tee shirt.

I took to spending time alone at school. The few friends I had were hard to talk to, because there was so much I couldn't tell them. By spring we had grown apart. It was easier to not have to explain, but I was lonely.

As Spring changed to Summer, it got harder and harder to avoid people seeing my scars. School let out for the year, but I spent almost all of my time indoors now. Finally at the beginning of July I couldn't take it anymore. I asked my mom if I could go back. I was pretty sure there were no more of Sandwich's loony prophecies about me, so I would just be able to see my friends, and be myself, without having to hide so much. At first, she said no, as was expected. But she couldn't ignore that I rarely went outside. I couldn't.

The second week in July she agreed. I sent word to Luxa, who was glad to have me come back. A new bat named Artemis came to greet me in the laundry room. When I first saw Luxa, I wasn't sure how to act around her. When I kissed her before, I thought I was going to die. Now that the threat of never seeing each other again was gone, I didn't know what to do. But Luxa just grinned and hugged me. And we were just friends again. That was fine for now. I may have been the warrior, and treated like I was older than I was, but I was only thirteen.

I spent most of the Summer down there. Sometimes I helped Luxa with trying to come to a peaceful agreement with the rats. Sometimes Lizzy and Boots came too. Lizzy was a big help with negotiations. She could look at their problems from an outsider's prospective and sometimes see problems or solutions no one else would have seen.

A new thing in Underland politics was the _Council of Underland_. There were two delegates from each group. Lizzy and I had an honorary spot as Overlanders, distinct from Underlanders. Lizzy was amazing. I never actually did a whole lot, but I still was respected.

When school started, I had to spend more time in Overland, but I visited Underland on weekends. My dad got stronger, but Grandma had to go to a nursing home. I still had access to the things in the Museum, which helped pay the bills and things.

When I was fourteen, Grandma died. After the funeral, I couldn't stand to be in Overland, which was feeling less and less like home. Mom let me go, and Luxa met me in Ares's old cave. I didn't want to cry in front of her, but I couldn't help it. Luxa just sat with me while I sobbed. Artemis and Aurora stood by, and Artemis put her wing on my shoulder. They never made fun of me for sobbing like a baby. That year I bonded to Artemis. I would never forget Ares, but Artemis had become close to me. We worked well together, but I still think Ares and I worked slightly better. He was my first bond, and that's something special.

When Luxa and I were 16, Vikus died. We went back to the cave, and this time, I held her while she cried. She was truly queen now, with complete authority. In Underland, 16 was considered an adult. But sometimes it's hard to be an adult at 16, and for a few hours, I helped her be a child again, crying for her grandfather. As she buried her face in my chest, and I felt my shirt become wet with tears, I realized that I was still in love with my friend. I just held her until she stopped crying. When she looked up at me, I simply said, "I'm here for you." I wanted to kiss her then, but I didn't. How could I, when she was still mourning Vikus.

When we were in the cave again, a few weeks later, I did kiss her. She was stressed. Being queen was hard. She had just asked me if I would still come to Underland when I was an adult. "Of course, " I said. We were sitting close, like we always did. I already had an arm around her shoulders, and I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers.

It was different from when I kissed her when we were 12. I didn't want to let her go. But I did. I wasn't sure how she would react. She looked up at me. "You just kissed the Queen of Underland."

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, already regretting it.

"Don't be," she said, leaning close to kiss me again.

When I got out of high school, I moved to Underland. Luxa and I were dating. Some of the officials in Regalia had not been happy about this, but there was nothing they could do about it. It was late August when I sought out Howard. "I need your advice."

"What do you need Gregor?" he asked, confused.

"I know a lot about Underland, and most of the customs are familiar to me, but there's one I don't know, and I need to." Howard raised his eyebrows, waiting to continue. I looked him straight in the eye and said, "I want to marry Luxa."

I had been a bit nervous, remembering his warning to me all those years ago, when I used a date as an excuse for going on a picnic. I didn't need to worry. Howard actually hugged me. He explained and I was surprised to find that I was supposed to propose like I would if we were in Overland. That was one of the few customs that were the same.

I took her to our cave, because it was special to us. The ring I had had been my grandmother's. I was so worried. I was only 18! I got down on one knee, looking up at her. I wanted to make some big fancy speech, but I couldn't find the words. So I simply said, "Will you marry me?"

She flung her arms around my neck and kissed me, before whispering, "Yes." I put the ring on her finger and kissed her again. She pulled away. "You know what this means don't you?" I looked at her blankly. "You're going to be king of Underland."

I pulled her closer. "I love you, and if I shall be king, so be it. If not, I don't care. I just want to be with you." It sounded corny to me, but she smiled, then puller me even closer for another kiss.

As for the rest of my family, Lizzy and Hazard got along well. He was almost as smart as she was, despite being younger. Her time in Underland changed her, and she eventually drifted away from her one Overland friend. She would write to Hazard, and eventually she invited him to visit Overland. I invited Luxa too. It took a while to get the OK, but they did eventually come. They came at night, so the bright sun wouldn't affect them, and it was early fall, so they could wear long sleeves to help hide the pale skin. As long as Luxa didn't look anyone in the eye, they wouldn't be noticed, especially in New York.

Luxa said she preferred Underland, but she did come visit me a few more times while I was in high school. Hazard came up more often. He blended in better, and eventually he got used to the sun, though it was best for him to come up on cloudy days. He and Lizzy got along great, and she seemed to become happier, and her panic attacks got fewer and fewer. She also kept in touch with Ripred.

Boots eventually forgot. We all agreed that that was best. But she never stopped talking to animals. We let her visit Underland regularly until middle school, and by that time, she could communicate with every animal in Underland, and was beginning to talk to some of the Overland animals that had no Underland counterparts. She grew up to be compared to Dr. Doolittle. I know she remembers Underland, but as she grew up, it became a thing of the past. By the time she was an adult, she hadn't been to Underland in years.

As Lizzy grew up, she was forced to choose between Underland and Overland, and chose Overland. But by then she was in college. It had been hard enough for her to be in two worlds in high school, but when she went away for college, on a full academic scholarship, there was no way for her to continue to visit Underland. Interestingly enough, Hazard spent more and more time in Overland. He liked Overland, and when he was sixteen, he moved up there, and started going to high school there. He stayed with our family. He and Lizzy dated, and when they both finished college, they were married. That was one of the few times Luxa visited Overland. They visited Underland occasionally, but it wasn't very often.

Several years after Lizzy and Hazard were married, Luxa led me to the prophecy room. "I know you don't believe Sandwich's prophecies, and I don't really either, but I wanted to show you this one just the same," she explained. I read it skeptically. I still didn't believe Sandwich knew what he was talking about, but I did have to admit, that this one had a nice ring to it.

_Underland and Overland_

_Their destinies entwined_

_One goes up and one goes down_

_Change laws as old as time._

_When past mistakes we lay aside_

_And peace across the land_

_A king, a queen, a warrior, _

_Two scholars hand in hand_

_Will bridge the gap of space and time_

_Of enemy and friend_

_To right the wrongs the past has faced_

_And keep war at it's end._

_The time has come_

_The past is gone_

_The future is ahead_

_And peace will reign in Underland_

_Long after they are dead._


End file.
